


This Year's Apologies

by professionalmomfriend (mothmanwashere)



Series: HogwartsStuck [5]
Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Awkwardness, Hogwarts Seventh Year, Misunderstandings, Past Relationship(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-29
Updated: 2015-10-29
Packaged: 2018-04-28 17:57:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,260
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5100233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mothmanwashere/pseuds/professionalmomfriend
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jake awkwardly tries to figure out how to act around his ex-boyfriend, and Roxy decides to meddle.  </p><p>Also Dirk is a whiz at braiding hair.</p>
            </blockquote>





	This Year's Apologies

**Author's Note:**

> Smooth Fall Out Boy reference in the title ftw

_September 1, 7 th Year_

_Hogwarts Grounds_

Jake English skips the last step off the train and lands on his feet in the gravel below.  He turns wonder-filled eyes up toward the castle, illuminated in the dying light.  The sight never gets old, no matter how long he’s been doing magic, or how many times he steps off the Hogwarts Express.  It’s home away from home, and he’s so very glad to be back.  His cousin steps off the train behind him, turning her equally excited gaze toward the torch-lit towers. 

“Here we are again, Jade!” Jake exclaims.  His Gryffindor tie is untied and tossed carelessly around his neck, but Jade quickly flicks her wand in his direction and his clothes straighten themselves out.  He laughs a bit.  “Thanks for that.  Guess I was a bit too excited to dress properly on the train.”

Jade shrugs as she straightens her own blue and bronze tie, then links her arm through her cousin’s.  “It’s okay! Oh hey, let’s ride with Jane and Roxy.”

Jake agrees enthusiastically and steps over toward the carriage bearing Misses Jane Crocker and Roxy Lalonde.  He helps Jade up before swinging himself aboard as well.

“Hey there strangers,” Roxy drawls in greeting, patting the seat for Jake to sit beside her.  “How was your summer?”

“Top notch, Ms. Lalonde! Quite satisfactory.  And yours?”

“Aw, you know.  Same old, same old.”  Roxy wrinkles her nose as she smiles.  “Janey here spent all summer in a muggle bakery and now she’s got grand ideas of _not_ using magic to make stuff!”

“That’s not it at all, Roxy,” Jane objects.  “I grew up baking the muggle way.  It’s so much easier with magic, but at the same time, it’s more rewarding to make things without it!”

“Oh golly Jane, I’m sure you’re excellent at it.”

“Mind if we join you?” inquires Kanaya Maryam, Rose Lalonde at her side.  Roxy jerks her head to the side, motioning them to go right ahead.  The two climb aboard and take a seat on the other side of Roxy.  The horseless carriage begins to rock, signaling its eminent departure.  Roxy clutches Jake’s knee to brace herself and Jake pats her hand gently.  The woman is brilliant on a broom, but the horseless carriage is what gets her nervous.  It’s a bit silly, Jake thinks, but he can’t exactly discredit someone’s fear, no matter how trivial it seems to others.

“Hold up, yo,” says a deep voice, and suddenly Dirk Strider is swinging into the carriage.  He settles in between Jade and Jane as the carriage lurches into motion and spreads his arms along the back of the seat.  Jake freezes uncomfortably. “Sup.”

“Thanks for joining us, Dirky,” Roxy says, though it sounds a little strained as she works to acclimate to the rumbling carriage.  “I almost thought you were gonna ditch us for your new BFF, Eridan.”

“Honestly, I couldn’t spend another goddamned minute with Ampora talking my ear off,” Dirk says.  “The dude has boundary issues.”

The girls giggle, and Jake tries to join in, but it stands out rather awkwardly.  He can’t quite look Dirk in the eye.  He’d spent the better part of sixth year getting to know Dirk rather intimately, but after… well, an unfortunate disagreement resulting in a mutual decision, they’d broken it off at the end of the year.  Now Jake had no idea what to do or how to act.  There had been a time when Jake would had called Dirk his best friend, and there had been a time when Jake fancied himself head over heels in love with Dirk, but he wasn’t quite sure about anything anymore.

“So, is Ravenclaw House in good hands this year?” Jade asks Dirk, nudging him in the ribs.  The two of them are still very much on good terms, and Jake knows they were in correspondence all summer.  Something about trying to remove enchanted grease stains from Dirk’s robes.  As the brightest witch and wizard Hogwarts had seen in decades, sharing arguably the smartest house for the past six school years, the two liked to team up and come up with solutions and improvements to the magical world together.  Jake has to admit that he is a touch jealous, but he tries not to let it get to him.

“You know it, Harley,” Dirk replies.  “Aranea’s kind of a stickler for the rules, but you know I’ll work around it from my end.”

“Naturally,” Jade says, rolling her eyes.

“I’m certain, Dirk, that if you put half as much effort into adhering to the rules as you did ‘getting around them’, you’d be the best behaved student in Hogwarts history.”  Rose leans delicately around Kanaya to stare at her cousin pointedly.  “But that’s just my opinion.”

“Opinions are like noses,” Dirk replies smoothly.  “Most everyone’s got one, but they should keep them the fuck out of my business.”

Jake coughs to hide his laugh.  Jade and Jane quickly disguise the shock on their faces.  Kanaya tucks her lips in, suppressing a smile.  Roxy, less subtly, begins chortling.  Rose smiles in faint amusement, seemingly unphased by her cousin’s rude remark.  “Excellent riposte, Dirk.  Excellent.”

Dirk’s wearing his infuriating pointy muggle spectacles that make it absolutely impossible to see his eyes.  Jake can’t wait until classes begin tomorrow and he won’t be allowed to wear them during school hours.  Or.  He supposes he can.  It’s rather easier without having to look Dirk in the eye.  He can still feel Dirk’s piercing orange gaze watching him, despite Jake’s determination to look anywhere but.

“Hey Dirk, would you braid my hair?” Jade asks, holding out a bright green ribbon, and turns so her back is facing him.  He agrees and quickly plaits her unruly black hair before deft fingers twist it into a smooth braid.  Jake finds himself staring at those nimble fingers of Dirks, lost in a myriad of memories.

Roxy’s hand curling in his robes pulls him from his thoughts of Dirk, and when he realizes, he’s grateful.  He looks over at the girl beside him.  There’s still uneasiness tinging her pretty pink eyes, but he places a hand on her back to reassure her.  She leans closer to whisper in his ear.  “Dirk misses you.”

The words hit Jake like a slap in the face, but he forces a smile.  “I can’t say as I don’t return the sentiment, but… well.  Water under the bridge, Roxy.”

“It doesn’t have to be,” Roxy argues, but Jake cuts her off with a tiny shake of his head.

“It does.  What’s done is done.  We’ve both made mistakes, and I can’t see us fixing them at this point.  There’s no turning back time.”

Roxy’s expression turns thoughtful, but she says nothing more, and Jake believes he is off the hook.  At least for the moment.  Roxy is a persistent woman.  It’s something he admires about her, really.  In all the years he’s known her, she’s been nothing if not perseverant.

Dirk ties off Jade’s hair with the supplied ribbon and says “There you go.”

“Thanks!”

“Look!” Jane gasps softly, pointing ahead of them.  All eyes turn toward the castle, seemingly even more splendidly lit than usual and stretching out in all of its grand glory directly before them.  They can see the trail of students making their way from the carriage stop to the front doors.  Their own carriage slows to a stop, and they make their own way, one at a time, off the carriage and up to the steps of Hogwarts.

**Author's Note:**

> For more on this au, including house divisions, please visit hogwarts-stuck-au.tumblr.com


End file.
